Appendicitis
by NEIWIS
Summary: When Reyna is stuck in the hospital with appendicitis, she tries to find a way to pass the time as she waits for her sister. She ends up having a long conversation with her roommate, trying to avoid a lecture, and meeting two new friends. A one-shot and companion piece to The Gambit.


**This is a companion piece to my story The Gambit. It is a simple, little one-shot I couldn't get out of my head. I hope you enjoy**

**Disclaimer: All characters belong to Rick Riordan.**

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"This sucks," Reyna muttered for the third time in the last minute. She was bored and confined to a bed. As she tried to shift, pain tore through her abdomen. One hand moved to press down on the place of pain.

Reyna laid her head back. She was probably the only praetor in history to pass out in a senate meeting due to appendicitis. Of course, Frank would claim that she was overworking herself. It didn't matter if that was true or not.

Nico had been at Camp Jupiter at the time. He was the one who told Frank the symptoms that Reyna was experiencing earlier in the day. It had been quickly diagnosed as appendicitis. Since there was no one in Camp Jupiter who could perform the necessary procedures, Reyna was forced to go to a mortal hospital.

Hazel and Frank were the ones who rushed her to the hospital. Hazel had easily manipulated the mist to get Reyna in under the guise that her sister was her guardian and would be there soon to verify Reyna's medical history. It had been a few hours, and she received no word from Hylla.

Being confined to a bed was the worst thing that could happen to her. There was nothing to do besides toss a dagger up and down. She didn't want to play catch and have a nurse walk in. There was no way of telling what they would see through the mist.

Reyna stared up at the ceiling. She made imaginary battle lines on the tiles. The room had already been examined twenty times.

There was one empty bed next to her. It was the one closest to the door. A bathroom was five feet away. That was more distance than she could walk. A nurse walked by the room every two minutes and twenty seconds.

Reyna's imaginary battle was interrupted by the door opening. She was surprised to see a man being led in by a nurse. With a quick examination of the man, Reyna realized he wasn't a threat. The man was in his thirties at least and had hair that looked like salt and pepper.

"I'm sure that I am fine. My wife just likes to worry," the man said to the nurse.

"Mr. Blofis, we think that your appendix is about to burst. It is a serious medical condition. We will have to wait for the results of the tests before we find out," the nurse explained. She laid the man down and started hooking him up to the machines.

"When can my wife see me?" the man asked.

"As soon as we get the test results" the nurse promised. She put in his IV and walked out. Reyna watched for a moment before she returned to staring at the ceiling.

"Are you a local?" Mr. Blofis wondered. It took Reyna a moment to realize that he was talking to her. She had to go with the safest response.

"Yes," Reyna answered.

"Do you mind helping me with a project? I'm here from New York on a work trip. I plan on teaching a mythology class at my school next year. I've heard that certain schools in California have a great course in mythology. Do you attend one of these schools?" Mr. Blofis asked.

Reyna hesitated. On one hand, she didn't want to lie and have him ask more questions that would poke holes in her story. On the other hand, she couldn't allow a mortal to screw up mythology.

"I do attend one of those schools," Reyna responded. It wasn't exactly a lie. Camp Jupiter could be considered a school. "My expertise is in Roman mythology, but I know the basics about Greek mythology as well."

"Do you mind if I review my material with you?" Mr. Blofis asked.

"I'm not going anywhere," Reyna said with a shrug. She shifted and winced in pain.

"I was going to have four separate units. They would be over Greek, Roman, Norse, and Egyptian mythology," Mr. Blofis explained. "I would start with Greek mythology. My students would get a list of the Olympians."

"It would be the same for Roman mythology," Mr. Blofis continued. "I'm not sure what minor Roman gods and goddesses I would use."

"Bellona would be a big one," Reyna said. "Whenever the Romans went to war, they would throw a spear into a patch of grass that was in her temple."

"I could compare her to the Greek Enyo," Mr. Blofis said.

"They're not the same," Reyna corrected. "Despite what a lot of historians believe, Enyo has no Roman form, and Bellona has no Greek form. Enyo represents a violence and fury in battle. Bellona represents a calmness in battle."

"Are there any other important gods and goddesses?" Mr. Blofis wondered. He was writing what Reyna had said into a notebook.

"Vesta is extremely important. She was a guardian of the home. Janus is important too because he was purely Roman," Reyna answered.

The next hour passed in a conversation of Roman mythology. Mr. Blofis seemed extremely impressed by how much Reyna knew. She was just grateful that the conversation made some of the pain go away.

As their conversation continued, a woman walked in. Reyna looked at her and frowned. The woman had brown hair with a bit of gray and blue eyes. There was something familiar about her.

Mr. Blofis didn't notice her walk in. He was too busy writing. Mr. Blofis continued his questioning, "So, Lupa was the one who rescued Romulus and Remus?"

Reyna nodded in agreement. She moved one hand so it was resting over her abdomen. The woman was studying her with an odd look.

The daughter of Bellona just watched her. Her other hand was resting behind her head. Her tattoo was visible. That was what the woman was staring at.

"Sally, you're here!" Mr. Blofis exclaimed. "I didn't notice you walk in. I was just questioning my roommate here about things I should put in my mythology unit,"

"I hope he's not annoying you. My name is Sally," the woman said walking towards Reyna. She held a hand out. Reyna slowly shook her hand. Sally's gaze focused in on the tattoo. It was like she recognized it.

Reyna ran the name Sally through her head. It didn't ring any bells. Could she be a demigod? One glance at the woman's arm showed she did not have a tattoo.

"He's fine," Reyna promised. Sally nodded and sat in between the two.

"They said you have appendicitis," Sally said to Mr. Blofis. He dramatically sighed.

"It looks like my appendix will be removed," Mr. Blofis said with another sigh.

"They remove your appendix?" Reyna asked quickly. There was no way that she could have surgery. She needed to get back to her duties.

"It isn't that bad," Sally promised.

"You have appendicitis as well?" Mr. Blofis questioned. He winced as Reyna nodded.

"Paul, you are going to scare her," Sally chided.

"Sorry," Mr. Blofis said. Reyna nodded and closed her eyes. She really didn't want to have surgery. Frank would force her to stay at home and relax. Why did her fellow praetors always worry about her overworking herself?

Reyna's eyes slowly opened as she heard the door open once again. She frowned as she saw Annabeth Chase. The daughter of Athena looked at Reyna then Paul. She looked confused.

"Annabeth?" What are you doing here?" Sally asked.

"I'm checking in on a friend," Annabeth answered. "What happened to Paul?"

"Appendicitis," Paul answered. "Where you visiting that camp? What was the name? Camp Jupiter?"

Reyna found herself tensing. These two knew Annabeth. They had to be friends or family. How did they know about the camp though?

"Percy and I were at the camp when I heard about my friend passing out in a meeting," Annabeth answered. Her gaze turned to Reyna. "You scared everyone when you did that."

"You're a demigod?" Paul asked looking at Reyna. The daughter of Bellona nodded.

"Reyna, this is Sally Jackson and Paul Blofis. Sally is Percy's mother," Annabeth said.

"The same Sally that promised to lecture the praetor that was in charge when Percy got his tattoo?" Reyna questioned.

"Yes," Annabeth answered with a smirk. Reyna gave her a look that warned her not to say a word. The daughter of Athena just smirked. "Sally, this is Reyna. I think Percy and I told you about her."

"The one who delivered the statue to Camp Half-Blood," Sally recalled.

"Your sister will be here in the morning," Annabeth told Reyna.

"What did she say when you told her?" Reyna asked.

"She laughed. She said something about how you could take on nine Hunter and Amazons, but a appendix took you out of action," Annabeth answered.

"What is your role at Camp Jupiter?" Sally asked. Crap. That was the one question that Reyna had been looking to avoid.

"I oversee the campers and make decision that effect everyone in the camp," Reyna answered. Sally nodded in acknowledgment.

"Are you still trying to find the praetor?" Paul questioned. He looked at Sally and smiled at her.

"I'm going to find the praetor," Sally swore.

"They were judges back in the old days of Rome," Paul said. "I'm sure Reyna here can tell you the current judges."

"Praetors were judges back in the old Rome," Annabeth confirmed. She smirked. "At Camp Jupiter, praetors oversee the campers and make decision that effect everyone in the camp."

Reyna laid her head back. A million curses ran through her mind. She swore that she was going to kick Annabeth's ass all the way back to New York.

"So, you were the praetor that gave my son a tattoo?" Sally questioned.

"Yes," Reyna answered meeting Sally's eyes. In that moment, she swore that Annabeth would not get the satisfaction of seeing her squirm. "The tattoos allow for a unity among the troops. It also allows us to know who your parent is and how long you have been in service to the legion."

Sally crossed her arms and seemed to study her. She finally spoke, "How did your parent react to you getting the tattoo?"

"I wouldn't know," Reyna muttered. Her eyes flickered up to the ceiling. "My mother is a goddess who I have never met. My father is dead."

"I'm sorry," Sally said after a moment of silence.

"I understand your point. How would my parent feel about me getting a tattoo without their permission? My answer is that they would understand that the life of a Roman is harder. We make more sacrifices. If that isn't a good enough answer, you can blame Juno for dragging Percy to the camp," Reyna said.

Reyna found the image of Sally marching up to Olympus and demanding to see Juno funny. It almost brought a smile back to her face. She forced herself to look at Sally. Surprisingly, Sally smiled at her.

"I'm not mad at you," Sally said.

"What?" Reyna asked. Annabeth started laughing.

"Sally already knows all about you. She yelled at Percy for the tattoo," Annabeth explained.

"I know that you were only doing your duty," Sally added.

"This was just a joke between you two?" Reyna questioned.

"If it makes you feel better, we saw each other in the hall and planned it," Annabeth replied.

"You're lucky that I can't get out of this bed," Reyna grumbled. She laid her head back and closed her eyes. The gnawing pain from her appendix came back.

"When you can get out of the bed, would you like to go to dinner with us?" Sally questioned. Reyna looked at her in surprise. The offer was one she had never received before. The daughter of Bellona nodded after a moment.

"How does your appendix feel," Annabeth asked.

"Like it is trying to escape," Reyna answered. She looked at her. "Can you promise me that you won't allow Frank to confine me to a bed?"

"No," Annabeth promised. She smiled and sat a backpack down. The daughter of Athena pulled out a board game.

"Risk?" Reyna asked.

"Do you think that you can beat me?" Annabeth asked.

"It's not a matter of if I can. It is a matter of how long it will take," Reyna answered with a smirk. She slowly tried to sit up but groaned in pain.

"Can we join in?" Paul asked.

"Of course," Reyna answered. "That way there is more people to watch me beat Annabeth."

Annabeth rolled her eyes. She managed to shift the beds enough so that everyone could reach the board.

"How do you play?" Sally asked. Annabeth explained the rules as Reyna painfully shifted herself so that she could see the entire board. She was going to beat Annabeth. The daughter of Athena looked at her.

"Bring it," Reyna and Annabeth said at the same time.


End file.
